" The year was 1968. My journey in life took me
to a place so unfamiliar to me. Fort Ord Army Base.
There is where i began my Manhood. (Boot Camp)
Week after week of drills that brought sweat out
of me that i never knew existed.
This was in Northern California. Land of American beauty.
Yet i was in Hell. All we thought at that time was, can we make it through?
Then beyond any notice to us, we were all called out for a roll
call.. The Commanding Officer awarded us with a weekend pass.
The cheer was so loud i thought i was in a Football stadium.
We were dismissed, and packed to see what "I Once Saw."
First stop. A town called Carmel. Cobblestone streets, trees with
leaves of color as if they were born out of a Kaleidoscope.
It was though i was living in a Charles Dickens novel.
I walked through stores that held no dust. Nothing out of place, they
had a Heavenly touch.
When i stopped for a bite to eat.
Even that was an unforgettable experience.
The food tasted much better. I didn't want to leave my seat.
What captured me the most as i strolled through these impressive
streets of Carmel, was a view in where i stood overlooking the Pacific
Ocean.
"BIG SUR". I almost fainted. A sight so beautiful to my eyes i wondered
Why? Why do so many people leave this great land of ours to go on
vacations elsewhere?
To be standing on a cliff looking at the raging ocean waves pounding
the walls of these mighty rocks.
"As I Once Saw" I yearn for more.
A sight that comes to me in so many of my nights.
Branded in my mind for the rest of my life."